In vitro antileishmanial and antioxidant activities of essential oils from different parts of Murraya paniculata (L.) Jack: a species of Rutaceae that occur in the Cerrado biome in Brazil

Abstract

In Brazilian folk medicine, Murraya paniculata has been used for treating intestine disorders, rheumatism and cough. This paper aims to investigate the in vitro antileishmanial and antioxidant activities of essential oils (EO) from M. paniculata leaves and fruits (ripe and unripe ones). Natural antioxidants may be very beneficial to improve quality of life, since they are capable of protecting the body against damage caused by free radicals and, consequently, either preventing or postponing many diseases from starting their cycles. One of the techniques which has been widely used for detecting antioxidant compounds is the method based on the elimination of the stable free radical 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•). It has been considered easy, precise, fast, simple, economical and appropriate to determine antioxidant activity of pure substances and complex mixtures, such as EO. Thus, antioxidant potential of EO was evaluated by using the method of the free radical 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•). EO from M. paniculata leaves and fruits exhibited weak potential, since EC50 values were above 700 µg/mL. Several reports have stated that volatile oils from plants show promising leishmanicidal activity against promastigote forms of Leishmania amazonensis; in relation to this activity, leaf oil was highly active (IC50 = 7.33±2.07 µg/mL) while ripe and unripe fruit oils were active, with values of IC50 = 30.77±2.07 µg/mL and 13.04±1.64 µg/mL, respectively. Both GC-FID and GC-MS analyses revealed that the major components determined in EO from M. paniculata were sesquithujene (25.0%), trans-β-caryophyllene (23.8%), α-zingiberene (21.0%), α-ylangene (13.3%), germacrene D (13.1%), α-copaene (12.7%), and β-cubebene (10.2%). In vitro antileishmanial and antioxidant activities of EO from M. paniculata have also been described for the first time.